Is unemployment taxable in Washington - confused about tax filing

I checked my account but don't see any tax documents. Where exactly would they be located?

Look under the 'Correspondence' section in your Washington ESD account. The 1099-G should be there as a downloadable PDF.

Wait, you can have taxes withheld? How do you set that up?

When you file your weekly claims there's an option to have 10% federal tax withheld. You have to select it each week though, it doesn't automatically continue.

Actually you can set up automatic withholding by calling Washington ESD directly. I used Claimyr.com to get through to an agent who helped me set it up permanently. Way easier than remembering to check the box every week.

That might be it - I moved in December. How do I request a duplicate?

Log into your secure account and look for 'Request duplicate tax documents' or something similar. It should be under account settings or correspondence.

They do give you the option to withhold taxes, but it's not automatic. The system assumes people might prefer to get the full amount and handle taxes themselves.

I had the same panic when I realized unemployment was taxable. If you can't pay everything at once, the IRS has payment plan options that aren't too bad.

Never heard of that service before. Is it legit?

Yeah it's totally legitimate. They basically call Washington ESD for you and get you connected to an agent. Saved me hours of trying to get through myself.

Good point, I almost forgot we don't have state income tax here. At least that's one less thing to worry about.

The 1099-G shows the total amount paid to you, including any weeks that might have been adjusted or corrected later. Check your payment history in your Washington ESD account to verify.

That makes sense. I did have one week that got paid twice by mistake and then they took it back. Probably shows up as two separate payments on the 1099-G.

Really? I thought you needed to have worked to get that credit.

Unemployment counts as earned income for some tax purposes. Definitely worth checking with a tax preparer or using tax software that can figure it out for you.

Ouch, that's a big hit. Did you have to pay penalties for underpayment?

Luckily no, because my total tax owed was less than $1,000 after all deductions. But it was still a shock I wasn't prepared for.

How much does Claimyr cost? I'm already tight on money from being unemployed.

I think it varies depending on what you need, but for me it was worth it to avoid spending my whole day trying to get through to Washington ESD.

That's encouraging! I didn't have anything withheld but maybe my other deductions will help.

Yes, all unemployment benefits including the federal supplements are taxable. Should all be included on your 1099-G.

Thanks, that's what I figured but wanted to double check.

Good to know there's a professional here! Do you see a lot of people who forget to report their unemployment?

More than you'd think, especially first-time filers. The IRS will catch it eventually since they get copies of all 1099-G forms, so it's better to report it correctly from the start.

Exactly, it's really not that complicated once you understand that unemployment is just treated like any other income source.

That's a good point. I did start a new job in November so I'll need to make sure everything adds up correctly.

Yeah, definitely worth double-checking. The combination of unemployment and regular wages can sometimes put you in a higher tax bracket than expected.

I keep seeing people mention this service. Might have to try it myself since I can never get through to Washington ESD when I call.

It's definitely worth trying if you're stuck. They have a good track record of getting people connected to actual Washington ESD agents.